Revenge is Sweet and Best Served Cold
by Fallen-Yuki
Summary: Galbatorix's 'daughter' has lived the past six years of her life only knowing the castle but when she finally gets the chance to leave she finds that there is a lot more to her life than she was told.
1. This is Your Life

_Revenge is Sweet and Best Served Cold_

_Chapter One: This is your life_

_By: FallenYuki_

"Release her, when she awakens I want her in the room designated for her." The man smiled coldly. "I want you in the room with her." He pointed out a maiden who nodded in understanding. "Say nothing about her past life; speak only of her new life." He left the room without another word but his laughing could be heard as he walked the length of the hallway. The maiden watched as the liquid slowly drained and the young girl collapsed onto the ground. A cloak was put on her in order to conceal her identity. She was carried to the other end of the castle and placed in a room. The maiden lay out several pairs of clothes on one of the chairs in the room and placed herself at another that sat at the foot of the bed.

&

"Milady," the young girl opened her eyes to see a woman hovering over her. "How are you feeling?" She smiled softly but the little girl only looked at her in confusion.

"Where am I?" She sat up quickly and backed away from the woman.

"Milady, you are in your room." The maiden tried to reason with the girl. "Oh my, it seems your condition is far worse than originally estimated." The maiden ran to the door and opened it, "please send for the king." She spoke quickly to one of the guards who had been stationed outside of the door.

"My condition?" Fear was evident in the young girls voice.

"From your accident." The maiden spoke softly.

"What accident? What happened to me?" She looked down at her hands. "Who am I?" The tears that brimmed her eyes threatened to fall as she looked up at the maiden.

"Princess Illiria. You fell off a horse during a trip through the market."

"Who are you?" Illiria suddenly became fearful of her own lack of knowledge.

"I'm your caretaker, I've spent every day with you since you were born." She brought her knees to her chest and cried into them. Her head shot up when the door suddenly burst open and a man came in and knelt by her bed.

"I'm so glad you have awoken." The man looked old, as though he had endured much and held great wisdom.

"Sire, she has no memory." The maiden brought her hands to her mouth as several tears fall from her eyes. The man looked from the maiden and into the young girls eyes.

"Do you know who I am?" More tears fell from Illiria's eyes as she saw the man's concerned expression.

"No," she shook her head. The man stood up and clutched the small girl to his chest.

"I'm your father." Illiria looked into the man's eyes and threw her arms around his neck. He held her close as a malicious glint shone in his eyes.

&

Her furthest memory dated back to six years ago, all that she could remember since was happiness. Ever since her accident, her father never let her leave the castle but she had never minded since she had everything she could possibly need. The entire East Wing of the castle belonged to her and she was free to roam it as she pleased. It came equipped with its' own garden as well as stable. She didn't have much time to think about what existed outside of the castle since her days were filled with education and training. Her father had always lectured her about how education was the best weapon so every day she had a different lesson, which varied from learning the history of Alagaesia to learning the ancient language. To her father's reluctance, she had also learned sword fighting as well as archery. It took several years of her bugging him for this to even be considered though as he did not think it lady-like for her to wield any form of a weapon.

She woke up from her sleep as one of the servants knocked on her door. Unlike every other day, Illiria got up from her bed and dressed quickly. Today was different; it was the celebration of her seventeenth birthday. She picked up the hair clip that was supposedly her inheritance from her mother, which had been passed down to each generation. She pulled up the top portion of her golden hair and pinned it into place. She was eager to see what her father had planned for her but knew that he would not allow her even a glimpse of it until she had eaten a healthy breakfast. She slipped her feet into her shoes and left her room.

"Are you ready for breakfast milady?" The Keratin was awaiting her as she did every day.

"Yes." Illiria smiled happily. "Do you know what my father has planned for me?" She hoped she could pry the woman for information.

"Of course, King Galbatorix tells me everything." She laughed. "No princess, he knows all too well not to trust me with information. My tongue is too loose for my own good." She smiled at Illiria who pouted at her. "You know it would work if I actually knew." They reached the small dining hall and both ate in silence.

"Can we please go now?" Illiria pleaded with Keratin.

"You know what your father would say if he saw you like this." Illiria rolled her eyes.

"Yes, of course I do." She cleared her throat, "it's not lady-like to behave in such a manner, please try to calm down and carry yourself in a respectful manner." Illiria straightened her shoulders back and walked with grace, which caused Keratin to giggle. "Now let's go." The young girl took off running with her maiden in tow.

"Illiria." The girl stopped suddenly at the sound of her father's voice.

"Yes father." She curtsied politely and smiled up at him innocently.

"I'm not going to lecture you today, but you know what I would say." He eyed her as she giggled mischievously. "Follow me." Illiria and her maiden followed the king as he made his way out to the garden. Illiria's eyes glowed as she saw a chestnut mare standing on its hind hooves while the soldiers struggled to hold it down.

"It's perfect." Illiria ran over to the horse and it immediately calmed down. It was true that she had everything she had ever wanted, but ever since her accident her father had not allowed her to have a horse for any purpose other than show. She had been desperately pleading with her father to give her a horse that she could ride but he continually refused. "Can I ride it now?" She turned around to her father who smiled and nodded. She ran to him and gave him a hug. "Thank you." She kissed his cheek and ran back to her room to change. As soon as she was out of range he laughed loudly. Every ounce of happiness faded from the maiden's eyes as she watched Illiria's retreating form.

_Take this horse and run away._ A single tear fell from Keratin's right eye.

Author Note: Please review and tell me what you think!!!!!!


	2. The First Waltz

_Revenge is Sweet and Best Served Cold_

_Chapter Two: The First Waltz_

_By: FallenYuki_

"Father please!" The tension in the air could have been cut with a knife. Galbatorix was calmly making his way through the East Wing.

"No, I've given you my decision and that's final."

"You reasons are entirely unrealistic." She looked at him sternly. "You base everything on one action that happened six years ago, I was _eleven_! I am much more capable now than I was before."

"Illiria, I almost lost you, as a father you must consider how that affected me emotionally." Galbatorix turned around to face her. "Please just listen to what I am saying. The answer is no, leave it at that." She watched her father as he disappeared behind the door that cut the East Wing off from the rest of the castle. "Wench." Galbatorix sneered, his advisor watching him calmly from his side. "Well, you're my advisor, advise me!" He growled to the man who had stayed calm throughout the ordeal, apparently unaffected by Galbatorix's rage.

"I don't see why you don't just give the girl what she wants."

"If I give the child and inch she'll take a mile. I'm supposed to be fatherly as well aren't I? What the hell kind of a father would willingly let their child dance with death?" Galbatorix stormed off to his throne room.

&

"I hate him sometimes." Illiria threw herself onto her bed and bury her face into her pillow.

"He is simply looking out for you." Keratin sat next to her on the bed and ran her hands through the girl's blonde locks.

"Oh he is looking out for me. He's definitely making sure no harm will come of me. I couldn't even trip without having someone there to catch me." She scowled and returned her head to the pillow.

"You are all that he has left," Keratin stood up and looked out the window that overlooked the garden.

"And what have I got left? I certainly don't have happiness." She sat up on her bed and sighed dejectedly. "What was the point in him giving me Fyra if I cannot ride her but in my garden?"

"Perhaps you should take it slow, get used to riding her and then prove to your father that you are competent enough to be allowed to ride in a larger area." Keratin excused herself from the room, giving Illiria the needed space to think. Sighing, Illiria opened the doors to her balcony and sat in her chair that opened to the sparring grounds outside of the castle. The castle was set up so that there were training grounds surrounding the castle; the north sector had an archery range set up while the east and west were set up for sword practice. Her father had never allowed her to venture outside of the East Wing but she loved to watch all of the soldiers' spar, which she technically wasn't allowed to do either. She had always been told that she was Alagaesia's 'best kept secret' but never quite understood why she had to be kept a secret. Her father would never answer her but Keratin had always assured her that it was simply because he worried about her. Grinning, Illiria changed into her training clothes and searched through her armoire until she found a black scarf and tucked it into her pocket. Sheathing her sword and grabbing her bow and arrows as well, she made her way into the hallway quietly. She ran stealthily to the base of the northeast staircase and tapped lightly on the bottom right corner of the painting. The painting turned quietly before allowing Illiria to enter the passageway. The passageway was only high enough for Illiria to crawl through; it veered to the south and then returned east again. The tunnel began to slope and Illiria sat and slid down, only to be deposited into a bush. She wrapped the scarf around her mouth and nose before drawing her sword and stepping out of the bushes.

"How unexpected." A group of soldiers turned around, grinning stupidly. A large grisly man spoke. Illiria allowed a small excited smile grace her features, not that they could see it. "This time, you won't be escaping." Each of the soldiers drew their swords and came after her. This tended to become routine for Illiria. She loved to fight but unfortunately found herself sparring against the same soldiers each time. She had complained to her father many times about her lack of talented partners and each time he had refused, whether it was because it wasn't lady-like or for her safety, he would not subdue to her pleads. She wanted a challenge and each time the soldiers willingly challenged her, but those who could prove a real challenge had always refused to fight her.

"I don't want you." She laughed softly.

"That's too bad." The man who was obviously the self-proclaimed leader stepped forward, tapping the blunt edge of his sword against his palm. He put himself into a fighting stance; Illiria immediately noticed a major flaw. "Don't under estimate me wench."

"I won't," the man laughed and lunged himself at Illiria who simply sidestepped him and brought her sword upon the back of his knee, causing him to collapse immediately. "I've estimated you perfectly." She smiled sweetly. It is often said that there is power in numbers, and this situation proved it perfectly. Some of the soldiers had paired off to spar one another after the fall of the large man and the others who stayed refused to fight her. She made her way gracefully to the center of the field and confronted a younger man whom she had watched from her balcony many times. "Fight me." The young man turned around to face her. She held the tip of her sword just underneath his chin.

"No," he brought his hand to her sword and lowered it to the side.

"And why not?" She took a step closer and drew several throwing daggers from her belt. "You are the best out here, are you not?" Her eyes narrowed upon his but he made no move.

"I have no quandary with you, I am simply here to improve my skill." The young man showed no fear nor hesitance.

"Then I'll make one." She threw one of her daggers at his face, which he easily dodged. Replacing the other two daggers in her belt, she moved her sword back to her right hand and swung it at him.

"I've made my decision, I will not fight you." He refused to draw his sword but simply dodged all of her attacks. She smiled calmly.

"You've made your decision now, but what if it's a life or death situation?" She suddenly became serious and the edge of the sword danced across his flesh, fresh blood began to seep through the open wound on his arm.

"Life and death situations are not always fair," his words flowing calmly from his mouth as she continued to slash at him. She managed to braze his skin several times but as he dodged them, he became quicker. This was what she had been waiting for, someone who could match or outdo her skill. She wanted to improve and now she'd finally found someone who could help her achieve just that. Getting caught up in her thoughts, she failed to see him move behind her and grab her arms. "What would you do if it were a life or death situation?" He took the blade from her hand and released her arms.

"I'd use my bow." She drew her bow and knocked an arrow, moving about so that she could not be hit but always keeping her arrow pointed directly at him at all times. "So you've finally decided to fight?"

"You've proven to me that you are more than serious." The boy referred to his cuts that he now had all over his exposed skin, and even some that could be seen through his ripped clothing. Their dance continued smoothly until something caught Illiria's attention, causing her to look up suddenly. The boy gasped as a thick chunk of her hair had fallen to the ground. "I'm sorry," he was terrified of what she was going to do to him. His expression quickly changed to confusion as he watched the horrified look in the girls eyes. Returning her arrow to the designated place on her back, she grabbed her sword from his hands and bowed quickly before disappearing back into where she had come from. He was at a loss of words for what had just happened. Illiria retreated through the passage and back into her room, where she found Keratin awaiting her return.

"Milady," Keratin gasped as she looked at Illiria's once beautiful hair.

"Do you think you can fix it?" Illiria quickly changed out of her training clothes and back into the evening gown she had donned earlier.

"I suppose I could fix a lot of things, but I've never in my life had to deal with something like this." Illiria breathed deeply as she took a chair and set it upon the balcony. She could hear her father below in the training grounds.

"Who was here earlier?" He was so loud it was as though he were standing just before her.

"Sire, I do not know." She could only vaguely here the young boy speaking to him in return.

"You must do it quickly!" Illiria pleaded with Keratin who retrieved the scissors and began to release pieces of Illiria's hair onto the training grounds.

"The next time this woman shows up you bring her straight to me. She's caused enough problems in the past." Galbatorix growled. Illiria released a sigh of relief when she thought her father had gone but gasped suddenly when she heard a muffled 'umph.' "Tornac, be sure that Murtagh is punished properly for not doing so in the first place." Illiria rushed to the edge of the balcony to see the boy she had sparred just previously on the floor, clutching his stomach.

"You must warn me before you move! I nearly removed your ear!" Keratin scolded Illiria who resumed her seat without complaint.

_I'm sorry… Murtagh…_Illiria fixed her eyes upon the mantle above her armoire as Keratin attempted to fix the mess that was her hair.

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